Safe and Healthy Spray Painting Tips

Protect your health and future with a dust mask rated for chemical vapors

Spray paint is toxic, and cheap masks don't offer much protection. The best way to avoid permanent brain damage is to use an activated carbon mask—more expensive, but worth the money.

By the DIY experts of The Family Handyman Magazine:May 2009

Should I buy an expensive respirator for spray painting?

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Activated carbon respirator

Protect yourself from chemical
vapors with a high-quality respirator.
Pick one that fits well and feels good,
and be sure it's easy to find replacement
filters.

Check out this warning from a typical
spray can label: “Repeated or prolonged
exposure to these chemicals
without the use of a proper respirator
can cause permanent brain damage, as
well as damage to your lungs.“ But solvent-
based spray paints aren't the only
products that present a health hazard.
You'll find similar warnings even on
water-based spray paints and many
insecticides.

The less expensive, N95 particulate
filtering respirators (disposable paper masks with two straps) do a great job of filtering out particulate matter. But they don't adsorb toxic chemical
vapors. To do that, you need activated
carbon. Most $30 and up
respirators have a P100 (100 percent
efficiency and oil compatible)
prefilter and an activated
carbon filter for the chemical
vapors. However, the $30 carbon
filter respirators sold at home centers
won't protect you against
every single toxic chemical listed
on every manufacturer's warning
label. The bottom line is, any carbon
filter respirator rated for solvents
and paint is better than a disposable
particulate respirator.

To save money over the long
run, buy a respirator that accepts
replaceable filter cartridges. But
before you shop online, check out
the availability of replacement filters
at your local hardware or
home center. You don't want to be
searching every store in town for
the right filter in the middle of a
project.

Tools & Materials List

Required Tools for this Project

Have the necessary tools for this DIY project lined up before you start—you’ll save time and frustration.

Required Materials for this Project

Avoid last-minute shopping trips by having all your materials ready ahead of time. Here's a list.